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Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 2013-04-11, Page 27THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 11, 2013. PAGE 27. Council commits to Hall needs assessment Blyth Me-to-We event returns Continued from page 1 ceremony for Blyth, the building is paramount to the Legion members. “We don’t own the building,” he said. “It belongs to the community... We really believe that it is an important part of our community. We would like to work together with council to see that Memorial Hall stands proud for many more years.” Rick Sickinger, the cultural development officer for Huron County, said that he’s proud to be a among the supporters of the Blyth Festival and Memorial Hall, and that with his history of work in the arts, he knows that both the hall and the Festival have national and international branding opportunities. “It’s respected for what it does,” he said, adding that he worked for the Stratford Festival and through his work there learned of the success of Blyth’s hall and theatre groups. “It’s a brand that North Huron should be investing in. If you build the capital, leveraging the building and the Festival will build great returns.” Deb Sholdice, general manager of the Festival, pointed out several key facts a study from that the Ontario Arts Council had completed which showed that investing in cultural endeavours is one of the most lucrative opportunities there is for a community. “We’ve had anecdotal evidence for a while about how a successful theatre can pay back to the community,” she said. “Now, the Ontario Arts Council had an independent research team to do some research and give us some feedback... arts and culture tourists are predisposed to participate in other activities. When they come to Blyth, they’re doing other things. “There are two things they are interested in primarily: walking trails and heritage downtown districts,” she said. “That makes us really poised to capitalize on the culture market to make Blyth a destination.” The report that Sholdice presented to council also indicated that culture tourists spend twice what other tourists do. The average art and culture tourists will spend $666 during a trip while other tourists spend $344. The report also stated that there can be as much as an 800 per cent return on investment for investments made into arts and culture. Rick Elliott, Chair of the Blyth Business Improvement Area also spoke, indicating that this project wasn’t about meeting the needs of today, but about propelling Blyth through the next 25 to 50 years and having Memorial Hall match a vision for that time period. He said that part of the project, as well as part of the Blyth Streetscape Project which inspired much of the debate that led to it project, was an emphasis on “dreaming out loud”. His dream, he said, was to make Blyth an experience to visit that would bring people back. “We want people coming from the outside to experience things in North Huron and the surrounding municipalities,” he said. “We want them to come back and want to make sure their needs are being met.” Blyth Lions Club Vice-President David Kelly said that the building was especially important for him and his family because of the history they have with their Blyth community. “My family is entrenched in this community and has been from the beginning,” Kelly said. “The first Reeve of Blyth was Patrick Kelly and he was instrumental in bringing the railroad. Members of my family have been living, dying and farming since the 1850s here.” He said that his family name is on the wall in Memorial Hall that recognizes those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for the country. “I know the sacrifices that were, and are being, made so I can do what I do and live where I live,” he said. Kelly told the group that the Lions Club’s motto is “We Serve” and that, while it means they serve the community and the people, it also means that they aim to serve future generation. “We owe it to future generations to preserve our beautiful theatre and hall,” he said. “That’s why I’m behind it, that’s why the Lions are behind it.” Kelly touted the youth of the Lions Club, getting a laugh from the rest of the room who were, for the most part, older than he. “We’re not old guys sitting around moaning about spending a few dollars,” Kelly said. “We’re ambitious and we’re here to serve. We’re looking for projects that are bigger than us that we can carry on for years to come.” Other speakers included local business people and members of the Blyth Festival board. North Huron council was very receptive. Reeve Neil Vincent said that, given the number of counties that are “dying,” he was happy to see this kind of energy coming from the citizens of his community. “I see the will and a purpose here and I believe that my council will work with you as much as we can,” Vincent said. Councillor Brock Vodden, who is also a local historian, said that he saw history repeating itself with this group in a good way. He indicated that in 1918 and 1919, another group was deciding on what to create for a cenotaph and that group built the hall as it stands today. A similar group, in 1970, prevented the hall from being torn down. “We’re in the same boat now,” he said. “We have visionaries making a plan and that’s good.” Councillor Archie MacGowan thanked the group saying that this kind of effort was what made him believe North Huron would continue to be successful. “There are so many communities, across the globe that are languishing from entropy,” he said. “North Huron does not have that problem thanks in a large part to people like you across the community. I have great hopes for the community because of this kind of dedication. Other communities would kill for this.” He said that he would fully support any project that saw the hall revitalized primarily because it’s a war memorial and because of its importance to the community. Each member of council shared their own story about why they supported the initiative and the meeting ended with Chief Administrative Officer Gary Long indicating that Director of Recreation and Facilities Pat Newson had already began lining up quotations for facility assessments and that North Huron would pay for the hall’s assessment. Smith said that was great as it would allow them to set their fundraising goal and get the project underway. Local youth will be hosting a mini Me-to-We event at the Blyth Memorial Hall on April 19 to help raise money for local charities. The fourth installment of the event which will feature local musicians and speakers and organizer Kathy Douglas believes that it will be a great success. “This year we’re looking at possibly getting donations from Libro Credit Union and the Blyth United Church Women (UCW),” she said. “That will be awesome as it will help us cover the cost and allow us to donate to the charities and local groups involved.” Musicians and acts to be featured include; Broken Remarks, a band with members from the St. Mary’s, Mitchell and Woodham area; Sacha, an acoustic, country and folk singer/songwriter who was born in Montreal and lives in Toronto; Blyth’s Brinna Bremner and Sarah Menary. Speakers will include a representative of Free the Children, who sends someone each year to discuss the issues faced by the charity organization, Meghan Lee- Gahan who’s life work has involved learning about injustice in the world and the St. Anne’s Catholic Secondary School’s Me-to-We group which is planning a trip to Nicaragua this year. The St. Anne’s group will be the primary beneficiary of the event, according to Douglas. The event begins at 7:45 p.m. with Broken Remarks taking the stage followed by some remarks from Sacha who will be taking the stage twice that evening. Tickets for the event are $10 and are available through Douglas at 519-523-4380 or at the Blyth Festival box office at 519-523- 9300. The Blyth Memorial Hall Friday, April 19, 2013 (doors open at 7:30, show at 8:00) Tickets: $10 donation each Local Speakers, Performers, and School Displays Proceeds from this event go to participating charities. 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DisplaySchool erformers, and o participating charities. sDisplay A NIGHT OF CELEBRATION AND ENTERTAINMENT An event for all ages 90th Birthday Celebration You are invited to attend a Come & Go Tea in honour of Adeline Campbell’s 90th Birthday hosted by her family on Saturday, April 20 2~4 pm Blyth United Church Best wishes only Happy 60th M.P. April 16 Love from Sandra, Brent & Rebecca, Kara & Brian, Les & Will, Ty, Kal, Louis, Brianna, Joel & Aaron & dog Tessa Ladies’ Spring Breakfast with Marianne Novoselac (author & team member at 100 Huntley Street) Saturday, April 20 Heartland Community Church, Clinton Registration ~ 8:30 am Cost ~ $8.00 Tickets at: Radiant Life, Goderich, Per-Fect Designs, Clinton, Gift Cupboard, Blyth Sponsored by ABC Women’s Ministry of Auburn, Blyth & Clinton Entertainment Leisure&